The Family One Chooses
by ROSSELLA1
Summary: Tripp's Dad comes back.
1. Chapter 1

Ch1

By ROSSELLA1

Note: I do not own I'm in the Band or any of its characters. Also, I don't know what happened to Tripp's father; I don't remember the show talking about him. If I'm wrong then, oh well.

"How awesome is this?"Tripp exclaimed, taking a bite of his pizza.

"I know," Derek agreed, "We finally made enough money to go out to eat for once in our lives!"

"But we didn't make the money." Tripp pointed out. "My mom gave us a fifty and told us to do anything we wanted with it as long as we weren't there for her charity benefit!"

Derek shrugged. "Which she wouldn't have done if we hadn't earned our keep!"

"I'll say!" Burger added "I had to get through ten songs of DDR today! It was tough, little man!"

Tripp was about to protest but thought better of it and settled for shaking his head. He glanced at Ash, expecting him to say something, even if it was irrelevant and was surprised to see that he wasn't even paying attention. Instead, his eyes were wide and he was staring straight ahead. Now that Tripp thought about it, Ash hadn't said anything for at least ten minutes.

"Is everything okay, Ash?" The youngest member of the band asked. "You seem quiet tonight."

Without moving his eyes, Ash leaned to the side to whisper in Tripp's ear. "I think someone wants to steal our pizza!"

"Why would you think that?" Tripp narrowed his eyes.

"That man's been staring at it, ever since he got here." Tripp followed Ash's gaze until his eyes lit on a man across the room. When the man's eyes and Tripp's met, they both widened. After a second the man got up and started headed towards them. Derek and Burger chatted on obliviously but Ash squared his shoulders defensively. "See? Here he comes!"

Tripp didn't answer. He suddenly wanted to be anywhere else in the world than right here and he wished he hadn't gotten the inside seat of the booth. The man kept walking until he was standing right in front of their table, causing Derek and Burger to finally look up.

"Hello," Derek smiled, "Do you want an autograph?"

"You're not getting our pizza!" Ash exclaimed, pulling the tray closer to him.

The man took no notice of either of these remarks. "Hi, Tripp." He said softy, causing all three of the other band members to look at Tripp confusedly.

"Dad?" Tripp whispered.


	2. Chapter 2

Ch2

By ROSSELLA1

Note: I do not own I'm in the Band or any of its characters. 

"Woah, dude," Burger whistled, "This guy's your father?"

"You never told us you had a father!" Derek said accusingly.

"Your Dad wants to steal our pizza?" Ash gasped.

"What are you doing here?" Tripp asked, standing up.

"Well, I was passing through and I thought I'd stop by and see you and your Mom!"

"Well, you've seen me now you can go!" Tripp sat back down and resumed eating his pizza.

"Hey, little man, he still hasn't seen your Mom! Shouldn't we head back to the house?" Burger said.

"My Mom doesn't want to see him, trust me!" Tripp snapped.

"Well, shouldn't Beth be the one to answer that question?" Derek asked.

"No!" Tripp shouted, causing everyone in the restaurant to stare at him. "I'll be in the Band Van." He muttered. Shaking his head, he pushed past Ash and headed out the door.

Tripp stormed over to the van but when he tried to get in, he realized that Derek still had the keys. Tripp thought about going back inside to get them but decided that that would make him look stupid. So he just waited. Hoping that someone would follow him out.

It took five minutes but finally there was a beep and the doors unlocked. Without waiting for the band to get there, he climbed into the passenger seat. He was soon joined by Derek in the front seat and Burger and Ash in the back.

"Hey, kid that was not cool the way you walked out back there!" Derek said.

"Yeah, little man!" Burger seconded. " Your Dad seemed upset!"  
"And he didn't even want our pizza to begin with! I can't believe you made me think he wanted to steal it!" Ash accused.

"Yeah, well he never cared when _I_ was upset, so why should I care whether he was?"

Derek laughed, "Come on, Tripp, it can't be that bad! So he just took longer coming home than usual!"

Tripp shook his head, blinking back tears. "You just don't get it."

"Well, maybe if you told us we would!" Burger said, as they pulled into the driveway.

"I don't want to talk about it!" Tripp muttered.

Derek scoffed. "Just like a teenager!"

The last remark hurt too much to hold the response back. Letting the tears flow, he sprang from the car and dashed to his room.


	3. Chapter 3

Ch3

By ROSSELLA1

Note: I do not own I'm in the Band or any of its characters. 

"Hey, that was not cool, Der!" Burger practically shouted.

"Yeah, you made Tripp cry!" Ash said. "Why would you do that?"

"I didn't mean to!" Derek snapped. "I didn't think he would take it like that!"

"Well, you better go after him!" Burger snapped back.

"Why me?" The Singer exclaimed.

"Because it's your fault he's upset!"

Derek sighed. "Okay!" He got out of the van, slamming the door behind him, and stormed into the house. Immediately he was besieged by a furious Beth.

"Why is my son crying? What did you do? If-"

Thankful for the distraction and hoping she'd take the weight off his back, Derek halted. "Nothing! We ran into the kid's Dad at the pizza place and he got upset!" He didn't mention his part in it.

"Oh!" Her eyes got wide; she glanced around as if looking for an escape. "You better go talk to him, then."

"Me?" Derek cried out. "Shouldn't it be you?"

"No!" Beth exclaimed, taking a step back as if by doing so she could ignore her responsibility. Then, in a more calm voice. "You're his friend, Derek. You'll know how to talk to him about this. I need to think." With a nervous smile, she turned and went into the other room.

Shaking his head, Derek continued on to the kid's room. "Kid!" He called out, knocking on the door. "Hey, kid! Can I come in?"

There was a pause and then, "Go away!"

"Okay!" Derek turned, relieved to have an excuse to abandon his 'job', only to smack into Burger. Apparently Ash and him had come in and suspected that Derek wouldn't do what he was supposed to do. "He wants me to go away!" Derek explained with a shrug. The two shook their heads in unison and gave him a small shove. "_Alright_!" Derek grumbled and turned back to the door. "Kid! I'm coming in!" He entered the room, closing the door behind him.

Tripp was lying on the bed, face buried into his pillow. "Go away, Derek!" He said in a muffled voice.

"I would but Burger and Ash are blocking the way." Derek replied and felt like kicking himself when he heard Tripp give something between a scoff and a sob. "Look, kid, I'm sorry I called you a teenager. I didn't mean it; you're not a teenager."

Tripp sat up and looked at him, his puffy eyes narrowed in confusion. "Yes, I am!" He said.

Derek plopped down next to him, draping an arm over Tripp's shoulders. "No, I was just joking; don't ever think you're a teenager because you're not!"

Tripp shook his head; He knew he wasn't going to win. "It's okay, Derek. I was just upset."

"I'll say!" Derek snorted. "Most kids are happy when their fathers come home!"

Tripp stiffened. "Yeah, well I'm not most kids."

"So," Derek amended quickly, before Tripp could pull away, "Why don't you like your old man?"

The kid relaxed a bit. "It's a long story."

"Well, you need to tell us sometime!" Derek scoffed. "I mean, we're a family! Your Dad's our Dad!" Tripp looked at him strangely. "Err..relative!" The singer fixed.

The lead guitarist shook his head again. "No he's not. As far as I'm concerned, he's not even my real father so you don't need to worry about him!"

"You mean you're adopted?"

"No, Derek, it's… it's…. it's complicated. Can we just leave it at that?"

The older man gave him a commiserating smile. "Sorry; I don't think Burger and Ash would be okay with that."

Tripp rolled his eyes. "As far back as I can remember my Dad was always a bully. Whenever something went wrong, it was always my fault. If we didn't have enough money it was always because I asked my mother for one candy bar, not because he spent too much at the store. If he didn't have a good day, it was because I was either too loud or in the way too much. He also expected me to be perfect. If I studied, stayed after every day for help and still got a bad grade in school, it was because I didn't study hard enough. If he came home and I was relaxing he said I was lazy and that I'd get fat if I didn't do something. Then if I was sick he would call me a liar and a hypochondriac; I once felt a pain in my chest and it was so bad I dropped to my knees in pain. He told me to shake it off and that it was just heart burn. When it turned out I was really sick and had to go to the hospital, he complained about how I was costing him so much for the medical bill. Up until then my Mom had always stuck by him but then she got angry; she told him he had to change and that he needed to start treating me better. Instead he just left us. Every now and again he tries to come back and play Dad but he always leaves in the end."


	4. Chapter 4

Ch4

By ROSSELLA1

Note: I do not own I'm in the Band or any of its characters. 

"Little man say what!" Came Burger's voice from the hall.

Tripp let out a growl of frustration. "Hey!" Derek snapped. "We're having a moment here! Go away!" There was the sound of footsteps and after they had faded, Derek turned back to Tripp. "So, you were saying?"

Tripp shrugged. "That's it. I know it doesn't sound like a big deal but-"

"No," Derek interrupted. "It is a big deal. He had no right to do that to you; that's abuse."

The kid blinked. "I never thought about it that way."

"Well, it is but don't worry; we're never going to let him near you again!" Derek promised.

Tripp smile. "Thanks, Derek. You're a good friend."

…..

"I don't know, Jack." Beth sighed into the phone. "I know. I know. I know you're his father but you haven't exactly been there for him."

Derek knew he should just go back to bed and pretend he hadn't heard anything, that it wasn't his business, but after what he'd heard from the kid he just couldn't walk away. It was near midnight and Derek had gotten up to grab a snack but had been surprised to hear Beth talking to someone in the kitchen. After listening for a bit, it had become clear that the person on the other end was the kid's sperm donor.

"I guess so." Beth sighed again. "Alright. I'll make up a cot on the couch for you in the morning."

This was too much. "You can't let him back in the kid's life!" Derek exclaimed, stepping into the kitchen.

Beth's eyes widened. "I'll have to call you back." She muttered quickly, and hung up. "Derek, Jack's Tripp's father. He-"

"So? He abused and abandoned the kid! He abandoned _you_!" Derek shouted. "And now you're just going to let him back in the house like nothing happened?"

"Derek, this is my family and-"

"You're letting Dad come back?" Came a voice from the hallway, and Derek turned to see Tripp standing behind him.

Beth took a step forward. "Tripp, I-"

"No! He was a complete jerk to us and he left us! Multiple times!"

"Tripp, he's your father." Beth pleaded. "He just wants a second chance!"

"Except this wouldn't be his second chance; it would be his millionth!" Tripp snapped. "You can't keep letting him back into our lives! He can't stay here, Mom!"

"That's not your decision." Beth replied sternly. "If your father wants a relationship with you then I see no reason he can't stay here."

"Well, if he's going to be here then I'm not." Tripp snapped and, before Derek or Beth could stop him, he sprinted out the door.


	5. Chapter 5

Ch5

By ROSSELLA1

Note: I do not own I'm in the Band or any of its characters. 

For a moment Beth and Derek just stood there. Then, "Well, go after him!" Beth shrieked.

"I'm gonna I just- hey! Hang on, why aren't you going after him?" Derek snapped.

"Because I wouldn't know what to say! Now go!"

"You're his mother!"

"And you're his-" They were broken off by the sound of a car starting.

Without waiting for Beth to finish, Derek tore out the door just in time to see the Band Van speed off down the street. "KID!" The singer shouted belatedly, waving his arms and running after the van. "HEY KID! COME BACK!" He slowed to a stop as the van rounded a corner.

"H-How did he-e get the ke-keys?" Beth asked, catching up with him.

Derek cursed. "We always leave them in the ignition at night just in case someone needs to run out for something important, like ice cream."

"How did he learn to drive?"

"Well, we taught him of course." Derek rolled his eyes. Honestly, the kid was fifteen; it wasn't like the kid was a kid anymore!

"Well what are we going to do?" Beth asked, starting to pace forth and back.

"Kugh, I don't know!" Derek exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air. "I mean, does the kid have his phone?"

"How am I supposed to know?"

"Well, let's go back to the house and check." Derek swiveled around and led the way back. The moment he got in, he got his phone out, went to the kids room, and dialed Tripp's number. He cursed aloud when he heard the phone ring from the desk. He cleared the number off his phone and dialed Izzy's; it took six rings for her to pick up.

"Wha…?" Came her voice, still foggy from sleep.

"Izzy, have you seen Tripp?"

"Derek, what…why are you…what are you talking about?"

"Tripp took off in the Band Van; have you seen him?" Derek asked impatiently.

"No... why did he," She yawned, "run away?"

"It's complicated. Look, if he comes by, call me. Alright?"

"Yeah, sure, but-"

"Thanks, gotta go." He closed the phone and went back to the band minus Tripp's room, flipping on the light

"Turn off the light, man!" Burger whined, waking up and trying to cover his eyes.

"Wha…?" Ash asked, sitting up.

"Get up. The kid ran away." Derek snapped, jerking a pair of jeans from the floor up over his boxers.

"What'd he do that for?" Burger sighed.

"Beth said she'd let the kid's Dad back in. He found out and took off." Derek threw over his shoulder as he went back out to the kitchen, where Beth was on the phone with Jared.

"Where are your car keys?" The singer interrupted their conversation.

"What?" Beth asked in a dazed tone.

"You keys! Where are they?"

"In my jacket pocket, but-" At this point the other two band members stumbled sleepily into the kitchen.

" 'm sorry 'bout Tripp, Beth," Burger mumbled. " 's there anything I can do you for?"

Derek went over to the closet, and rustled through her pockets until he fished the keys out. "I'm going to drive around the town and see if I can find Tripp. Burger, you stay with Beth in case he comes back. Ash, you come with me." No one questioned their positions. Burger sat down with Beth at the table and Ash and Derek went out to the car and took off.


	6. Chapter 6

Ch6

By ROSSELLA1

Note: I do not own I'm in the Band or any of its characters. 

Tripp floored the van, getting away from his house and his mother as fast as he could. He didn't have a clear idea of where he was going. He thought about going to Izzy's and then about going to Jared's but Tripp quickly dismissed those ideas as those were the places his mother would check first. Instead, he drove aimlessly around town, taking turns at random, retracing paths without meaning to, the ones he knew by heart. Finally, he pulled off the road, into a small woods just on the side of the town. Nearly no one went there and most of the times even the locals forgot it existed. He knew his mother wouldn't even think to look there.

His Mom. Tripp couldn't believe she was even considering letting his father back in their lives. After all the man had done to them… Well, he wasn't going to put up with that again. He wasn't some helpless child anymore. Unlike the rest of the band members, he actually saved money. The bad part was that it was all in the bank and he wouldn't be able to get it out without his mother's permission. Fat chance she'd agree to him emptying his savings. Well, the Band Van wasn't such a bad place... But no, his mother would never agree to that, either.

Growling, Tripp got out of the van, slamming the door behind him, and leaned up against it, resting his head on the cool window. Damn, why did his Mom have to put him in this position? Why did his Dad have to come back? Why did- why did- why did everything have to happen like this? Restlessly he walked around to the front of the van and hopped onto the hood, only to jump back down again, seconds later. Walking a bit into the woods, he grabbed the lowest branch and swung himself up into the tree.

...

Derek and Ash had been driving around the town for an hour and had still not seen any sign of the van. Finally Derek pulled over. "Okay, I give up. The kid must have left town."

"We're looking for Tripp?" Ash exclaimed. "I thought we were just having a nice drive around town."

"No!" Derek spat. "Why would we do that?"

Ash sniffed. "Because we're friends." He turned away.

Derek sighed. There was no use taking it out on Ash; it wasn't his fault he was stupid. "Sorry, I'm just worried about the kid."

"Hey, don't worry." Ash grinned. "I'm sure Tripp's fine. We lived here for only a couple of weeks before we moved into Tripp's house and we did fine. Tripp's been living-"

"That's it!" Derek shouted.

"Oww!" Ash jumped. "There's no need to yell; I'm right here!"

"Where did we used to stay when people called the cops on us and they kicked us out of some idiot's backyard?"

"Umm…the Band Van?"  
"And where did we park the Band Van?" Derek asked in a condescending tone.

"In some woods." Ash answered, clearly not seeing where this was going.

"Exactly. There're some woods just outside the town. I be the kid knows about them too! Maybe that's where he went!" What Derek didn't add was that if Tripp wasn't there, he didn't know where else to look.

"Well, let's go!" Ash said. Derek started the car again. They drove the mile or so to the outskirts of town and then started looking along the sides of the road. "Hey, there's the Band Van! I wonder what it's doing out here?" Derek pulled to the side of the road and looked at him. "Oh!"

"Come on." Derek shook his head. He got out of the car and ran to the van. "Tripp?" He opened the door and poked his head inside. "Tripp?"

"Is he there?" Ash asked, catching up to him.

"No." Derek cursed, slamming the door. "TRIPP!"

…..

Tripp had been dozing off when he heard his name being called. Opening his eyes, he stayed as still as possible, listening for the voice again.

"TRIPP!"

The lead guitarist breathed a sigh of relief and leapt out of the tree. "I'm here, Derek!"

The singer whirled around and dashed over to Tripp, drawing him into an embrace. "Finally! We've been looking all over for you!"

"Yeah." Tripp saw that Ash was there, too. "This is a really nice town!"

"What the hell were you thinking?" Derek asked, holding Tripp away from him, his hands on the kid's shoulders. But his tone was more worried than angry. "We were beginning to think you'd left town!"

"Don't be silly, Derek." Ash laughed. "Why would he want to leave a town like this?"

Tripp ignored him. "I wasn't thinking." He admitted. "I just…I just panicked. And then I ran. And then I drove off." He looked up at the band leader. "I can't live with my Dad again. I just can't! If my Mom-"

"Relax, Kid!" Derek exclaimed. "We're not going to let him hurt you!"

"Why would your Dad hurt- Oh!" Ash said.

"And if he tries to we'll just make him leave!" Derek finished. "See? No problem!"

"Oh, yeah? How exactly are you going to make him leave?"

Ash laughed. "Well, it's our house we can-"

"No!" Tripp snapped. "It's my Mom's house and if she lets him stay then I'm screwed!"

"Oh," Derek frowned, "right. Well, then we can just move into the Band Van!"

"My Mom would never let me." Tripp shook his head. "I thought about that already."

"Kid!" Derek nearly shouted. "It doesn't matter what your Mom wants! Haven't you ever heard of the Emancipation Proclamation?"

"That has nothing to do with my situation; that was Abe Lincoln declaring that slavery was illegal."

"Exactly!" Derek said.

"Teenagers aren't slaves." Tripp sighed.

"They're not?" Ash asked.

"But they have to do whatever their parents tell them to without time off or pay…" Derek trailed off.

"Yeah, but it's not…" Tripp shook his head. "Never mind. Until I turn eighteen, I have to do what my Mom says and she'll never let me move out.

"Hmm…"Derek narrowed his eyes, "Well, I guess we'll just have to lock him up in my dungeon."

"You have a dungeon?" Tripp asked hopefully.

"Shhh!" The singer looked around, then raised his voice. "OF COURSE NOT! HA, HA. BUT IF I DID HAVE A DUNGEON, HYPOTHETICALLY. AND IF HYPOTHETICALLY YOUR FATHER IS A JERK THEN WE COULD LOCK HIM IN MY HYPOTHETICAL DUNGEON! HYPOTHETCIALLY OF COURSE!"

"No one's going to hear you, Derek." Tripp sighed. "No one ever comes here."

"Oh." Derek smiled. "Well then, it's not hypothetical then. "Come on, kid." Derek clapped a hand on Tripp's shoulder. "Let's go home."


	7. Chapter 7

Ch7

By ROSSELLA1

Note: I do not own I'm in the Band or any of its characters. 

"TRIPP!" His mom cried out as they entered the house.

Tripp held back. His dad was sitting on the couch. "What's he doing here?"

"Watch your tone!" His mother snapped.

"I think the kid has a right to know." Derek stepped forward, placing a hand on the kid's shoulder.

"Look, Tripp." Mr. Campbell got up. "I know I haven't been there for you in a while-"

"Try ever!" Tripp scoffed.

"But I want to make it up to you." Jack continued. "I'm going to move back in with you and Beth so that-"

"NO!" Tripp shouted. "Every time you come home you end up being an asshole and-"

"Watch your language!" Beth interrupted.

"And then you leave anyway." Tripp continued. "You can't come back this time."

"I'm with the Kid." Derek stated firmly. "You have no right coming back here."

"Derek!" Beth gritted out. "Burger. Ash. This is a family discussion."

"Hey what did I do?" Burger exclaimed with a wounded look.

"I wish I had a family." Ash pouted.

"Go to your room so that we can talk to Tripp alone." Beth ordered.

"I want them here! They're part of our family! Or at least _my_ family! " Tripp protested.

"Aww, that's so sweet!" Burger smiled.

"I have a family?" Ash cocked his head to the side.

"But-"

"Beth." Jack spoke up, putting a hand on his ex-wife's elbow. "It seems that Tripp is pretty close to his…" He rolled his eyes over the band with an air of curiosity and disdain. "… friends. If he wants them to stay, then that's fine with me."

"Good because we weren't going to leave! So there!" Derek laughed insanely.

Burger shrugged. "I was going to do what Beth told me to."

"I was gonna stick with Tripp because that's what families do!" Ash said proudly.

Beth opened her mouth as if to protest, then sighed. "Okay then, you boys can stay."

"Look, Tripp." Jack came up to his son, placing a hand on Tripp's shoulder. Tripp quickly brushed it off and took a step closer to Derek. No way was he going to trust his Dad not to hurt him. "Okay." His father conceded. "I guess that's fair." He swallowed. "We both know that I haven't been an ideal father to you. Your Mom and I married young and I wasn't ready to be a father. Because of that I popped in and out of your life and when I was here I put too much pressure on you. I treated you like an adult when you were just a kid and because of that you've had to grow up without a father. Nothing I can say or do can make that up to you. But I want to do what I can to be your father now. Will you let me?"

"No! You know, I already have a father and he's not you!" Tripp growled, and before anyone could stop him, stormed off to his room.


	8. Chapter 8

Ch8

By ROSSELLA1

Note: I do not own I'm in the Band or any of its characters. 

Derek stuck his tongue out at the two Campbell's remaining in the room. "See? Now look what you've done!" He snapped, following Tripp. How could Beth even consider letting this pretentious prick stay in the house? After all he'd done to Tripp? Approaching the kid's door, Derek brought his fist up to knock on the door.

"Go away!" Tripp's muffled voice called out.

"It's me, kid. Can I come in?"

There was a small pause and then there was the sound of the lock sliding over. "Lock the door behind you." Tripp said, walking back to his bed as Derek entered.

The singer did as he asked and came to sit beside the kid. "Hey." Derek draped and arm around the guitarist. The kid leaned into him in reply. "Talk to me, kid."

"What's to talk about?" Tripp scoffed. "My Dad's moving back in and there's nothing I can do about it."

"Well… maybe there's nothing you can do. But there's definitely something _we_ can do!"

The kid looked up through his bangs at Derek. "Yeah? Like what?"

"Um…not sure yet." Derek rolled his eyes. "Gotta give me some time to think. But we _will_ think of something. I mean. We're Iron Weasel!" Tripp laughed. "See that's what I like to hear. We can do anything." Then in a softer tone. "I promise you that I won't let him hurt you."

"Thanks, Derek." Tripp sniffed.

"Now listen, it's late. Why don't you try to get some sleep?"

"I don't know if I can." The guitarist looked uncharacteristically vulnerable and Derek was reminded of the fact that the kid was just a kid. "I don't like having him in the house. It makes me nervous."

"Why don't we have a sleepover?" Ash's voice called into the room, through a crack in the door.

"Yeah!" Burger's voice followed. "We could sleep in the Band Van, order pizza, and roast marshmallows by the exhaust pipe!"

"LADS!" The lead singer growled, but Tripp just laughed.

"Sure. That sounds great…except for the marshmallow part."

…..

Later that night, as the band fell asleep in their van, Jack Campbell settled down inside the house. He was slightly irate that he was being made to sleep on the couch. It was, after all, his ex-wife's house! Surely he should be offered the guest room, at least! But, no; for now that belonged to Iron Weasel! The very name disgusted him. How dare Beth let their son participate in a rock band named after a phallus! Well, that would all change sooner or later. It was only a matter of time before he convinced her to kick them out, and then Beth, Tripp, and he would be a family again. With this thought in mind, he rolled over on the couch, and drifted off to sleep.

…..

It was three in the morning when Derek finally managed to climb over his sleeping band mates and out of the van. Now stood watching over the sleeping beast. It sighed as it slumbered, unaware of the danger that was near. The singer felt the urge to kneel on top of it and smother the beast with the pillow, but quickly squashed the feeling. That would cause more trouble than it would solve. Instead, he knelt down next to the couch and placed the glass of water he was holding on the floor. Then, taking the beast's fingers, he gently eased them into the liquid. With a smile, Derek rose to his feet and headed back to the van. Desperate times called for desperate measures.


End file.
